Ideas Made Real

01/02/2026

January 1, 1892 saw the opening of the Ellis Island Immigration Center in New York. People came from all over to start a new life in the United States. Some came from humble backgrounds, while others had had great wealth only to have to leave it behind as they fled persecution, or actually had it taken from them. But many flourished in their new surroundings and made great contributions to this country, as immigrants do to this day.

Today's Challenge: These days, when the subject of Ellis Island comes up, the talk usually turns to all the names that were changed there. Twelve million people passed through Ellis Island over the years. How many names do you think were changed at the Center?

As usual, skip the search engines for the answer and use your noodle. What do you think would be a likely percentage?

Leave your answer in the comments, or send an email to [email protected], then check back tomorrow for the answer.

Good luck!

09/25/2025

“I don't know exactly where ideas come from, but when I'm working well ideas just appear. I've heard other people say similar things—so it's one of the ways I know there's help and guidance out there. It's just a matter of our figuring out how to receive the ideas or information that are waiting to be heard.”

—Puppeteer, animator, actor, and filmmaker Jim Henson, born on this day.

09/17/2025

The next time you think a flight is taking an awfully long time, consider the lot of C. P. Rogers on the first transcontinental flight from New York City to Pasadena one September 17th, which took 82 hours.

What year was it? Sure, you could do a search. But use your noodle instead.

C. P. Rogers probably wasn’t thinking, “Oh, 82 hours! What a long time to be sitting on a plane!” Only later, when air travel evolved, was the time required dramatically reduced. He was probably just grateful he had the opportunity to take that flight.

Today’s challenges:

1. Is there something you do every day in your work that used to take a whole lot more time? Take a moment to relish the fact that you can now do it more quickly.

Conversely, is there anything you’ve been “speeding through” that you think would work better if you slowed things down?

2. Think of something you’ve been putting off doing because you know it will take some time—maybe not 82 hours, but not five minutes, either. It’s easy to feel overwhelmed in that case. List the actions you’ll need to take to get it done, and estimate how much time each one will need. Then choose one to do by the end of the week.

09/01/2025

Labor Day already? Yes, indeed--and an excellent time to think about work. See you tomorrow!

No, he explained patiently, he wanted to be Laurence Olivier.

01/02/2025

“We must be willing to let go of the life we have planned,” wrote E. M. Forster, born on this day, “so as to have the life that is waiting for us.”

In _This Is Not the Life I Ordered_, former member of Congress Jackie Speier, who had a life-altering experience at Jonestown, and three of her friends discuss coming to terms with the discrepancy between the life they had in mind and the one that unfolded before them.

Oliver Burkeman, author of _Meditations for Mortals_, says our attempt to “get it right this time” and do everything perfectly sets us up for failure and, in a way, inertia. https://www.kqed.org/forum/2010101908305/author-oliver-burkeman-wants-you-to-embrace-imperfection

Instead, success comes when we take one simple action after another.

Today’s challenge: What’s one action you can take right now on something that’s really important to you?

Need help? Visit https://ideasmadereal.com/services/coaching/ and call us at
415/796-3969 or send a text to 415/596-4244. We’ve helped lots of people take action on the things that most matter to them, and look forward to helping you.

“What happens in a coaching session? How long are the sessions?” The initial session focuses on what’s most important to you (your reasons for being in business/changing careers, your g…

09/03/2024

The office has been closed for Labor Day. But it's still a fine time to think about what work means to you.

No, he explained patiently, he wanted to be Laurence Olivier.

09/05/2023

As in past years, the office is closed for the Labor Day holiday. But it's still a fine time to think about work--the meaning of it.

No, he explained patiently, he wanted to be Laurence Olivier.

09/05/2022

The office is closed for the Labor Day holiday, but here's a favorite story from our archives. Enjoy.

No, he explained patiently, he wanted to be Laurence Olivier.

05/20/2022

"There is no such thing as a great talent without great willpower," said novelist Honore de Balzac, born on this day.

Some would say, "Bunk. Talent is somehting you're born with."

Ah, but Balzac didn't just say "talent." He said "great talent." Which takes us back to the wisdom of Carol Dweck.

No, he explained patiently, he wanted to be Laurence Olivier.

01/05/2022

Since the first automobile hit the road people have been talking to their cars (mostly complaining) My Mother, The Car, a popular American television show in the 1960s featuring Jerry Van D**e, allowed us to hear what the car had to say.

But just as a parent might say to a child, “Those dishes aren’t going to wash themselves” (The Jetsons found a nice way around that), most people never expected cars to drive themselves, despite efforts in that direction beginning in the 1920s. Between then and the real self-driving car showing up in the 1980s, on January 4th of a certain year New Yorkers had the opportunity to ride a train without ever seeing a conductor or “motorman.”

Today’s Challenge: The engine most people use several times a day is the search engine. Your mission, just for today, is to guess, without doing a search, which January it was that New Yorkers first rode a “self-driving” train.

Tip: Start by guessing the decade. You know the parameters—it was between the 1920s and the 1980s. Now think: when would technology likely have developed enough to make that self-driving train a reality?

What would you like to create in 2022? Is it time to change your job, find a new career, or reach a new kind of customer? Visit Ideas Made Real at www.ideasmadereal.com, and call us at 415/796-3969 (text 415/596-4244). Every day we help people take the steps to make great things happen. We look forward to helping you.